RedMsg Daily Brief
The Lead
Team newsofficially confirmedunresolved
United will check Luke Shaw's fitness before they name their derby squad
United's derby guide says Luke Shaw's fitness will be checked before the squad is confirmed, an officially confirmed line from manutd.com naming no condition either way. Carrick said Thursday that United would see how Shaw is over the next couple of days. Dorgu covered left-back, set up the opening goal and was named UEFA's player of the match.
Sports Mole predicts Shaw clears and starts; the Standard predicts a switch to Dorgu further forward that would require Shaw to prove his fitness. Both are billed as predictions, and no team sheet exists. A Goal post says Carrick has confirmed a late fitness test, a claim none of the 69 pages read here support: the club's sentence uses confirmed for the squad announcement, not Shaw's condition.
Last material change 13h before this edition's data.
Our read
Dorgu's derby-defining night against Sabah makes this a selection headache, not just a fitness update.
The Briefing
Carrick, speaking separately to Sky Sports, said City's Premier League wins and derby triumphs since his playing days have ramped up the rivalry, and that he hopes United come out on top on Sunday.
Quotereported
United's derby guide names four players sidelined by injury: Amad, Matthijs de Ligt, Carlos Baleba and Manuel Ugarte, with Ugarte pictured recovering from a June World Cup ligament injury, no return date given.
Injuryofficially confirmed
The 1958 have set their protest against the club's ownership for 3pm at the Bishops Blaize, an hour and a half before kick-off.
Fan reactionreported
@The__1958 · paywalled, link only
Supporters voted Kobbie Mainoo player of the match against Sabah with 32 per cent of the vote, ahead of Fernandes on 25, and the club's Saturday post calls Carrick a big fan of his.
Team newsofficially confirmed
Creator Spotlight
Laurie Whitwell
Laurie Whitwell, tier 1, credibility 92 on our own scale.
Laurie Whitwell is the Athletic's senior United correspondent and the highest-volume beat writer we track: 363 attributions across 283 distinct stories in the last 30 days. That output puts him at tier one on our sourcing scale, credibility 92, and his bylines routinely trigger coverage elsewhere on the beat before anyone else has filed.
Club Pulse
Ownership: quiet (thin sample)
Manager: 28, -3 on a sample of 3
First Team: 20, -5 on a sample of 19
Academy: quiet (thin sample)
Women: -1, +18 on a sample of 6
First team mood cools into Sunday, manager sentiment holds steady, women's climbs on derby buildup. Ownership and academy sit quiet: sample too thin to score.
Fan Voice
One post traces Mainoo's rise from unable to start to running the midfield in a year; another weighs how differently each side arrives at Sunday's derby.
Kobbie Mainoo couldn’t start a premier league game for Manchester United this time last season. Now he’s running the club’s midfield in the champions league.
@AnnemarieDray, sentiment positive
City come to Old Trafford top of the league with a perfect record. We arrive off the back of a 4-0 European night and a point at Everton.
@MUFCTitleWatch, sentiment positive
Player in Focus
Marcus Rashford
3 mentions on the day's count, sentiment neutral, trend rising.
Rashford's rest against Sabah is United's own word for it: Carrick said the aim was to keep everyone fresh, and welcomed having him ready for the weekend. The pool sits at three mentions, a thin base: Šeško and Cunha both scored in his absence, and one broadcaster has argued for dropping him. Carrick has named no side.
The club's own word for his absence against Sabah is rested, and Carrick closed the answer by saying it was nice to keep Marcus fresh and ready for the weekend. No body part appears for him in the club transcript or on any club page, and the newest team-news page published anywhere on Friday names him ten times, every one about selection rather than fitness.
Loan Watch
Eight of the summer's outgoing loans and permanent exits have all landed: Collyer at West Brom, Moorhouse at Dundee, Obi at Willem II, Gore at Luton, Biancheri at Wacker Innsbruck, Ogunneye and Scanlon at Arsenal, and McAllister's youth move to Radcliffe FC.
Departed Toby Collyer. Toby Collyer, CM, West Bromwich Albion.
Departed Jack Moorhouse. Jack Moorhouse, MF, Dundee.
Departed Chido Obi. Chido Obi, ST, Willem II.
Departed Dan Gore. Dan Gore, CM, Luton Town.
Departed Gabriele Biancheri. Gabriele Biancheri, ST, FC Wacker Innsbruck.
Departed Habeeb Ogunneye. Habeeb Ogunneye, RB, Arsenal.
Departed James Scanlon. James Scanlon, FW, Arsenal.
Departed Finley McAllister. Finley McAllister, MF, Radcliffe FC.
Rivals Radar
Maresca rules Doku out and calls O'Reilly fit, while City arrive on four straight wins since the Community Shield defeat to Arsenal.
Man City. Maresca rules Doku out of the derby and says O'Reilly is fit
City are at Old Trafford on Sunday at 16:30 BST for the 199th Manchester derby.
Man City. City have won four in a row since losing the Community Shield
This is the form City bring to Old Trafford on Sunday.
From the Archive
09-12 · 1956
First European Cup tie
United played their first match in the European Cup, winning 2-0 away to Anderlecht in the preliminary round first leg. Taylor and Viollet scored. Attendance 35,000.
United's first European Cup tie: 2-0 away at Anderlecht in the preliminary round, Taylor and Viollet scoring in front of 35,000.
Hot Topics
Maresca's first Manchester derby (38, rising) · Rashford's place on the left (37, rising) · Luke Shaw's fitness for Sunday (29, rising)
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